We seem to get 3-4 phone calls per day asking what to do about a judgment. In most cases, the only option is to settle. You cannot raise “statute of limitations” defenses, or say that “it was my ex-wife’s debt”. Those are affirmative defenses that needed to be raised BEFORE the default judgment was entered. Having said that, all default judgments should be reviewed because there is an opportunity to strike them under certain circumstances.
In order to get a default judgment, the Plaintiff must do everything properly. That means that they must properly serve you with the complaint, they must include the proper notice to defend, the proper important notice, and if the debt was sold, it must include an allegation that they are the assignee of the account. As far as service goes, this means that the sheriff must have served you or an adult in your family with the lawsuit. Every once in a while, we come across a case where “sewer service” occurs. This is where the lawsuit is allegedly served upon “someone”, but you have no idea who that “someone” is. This happens most often when you live in an apartment complex or you move from your residence. Service may also be obtained by mail, but only after a Court Order is issued. Another scenario that we see is where the Notice on the Notice to Defend is incorrect. It might be missing language, have extra language, have the incorrect phone number or address for the bar association, there are a few different issues that we look for. The same applies to the Important Notice (or 10 day notice). We had a scenario where a certain attorney was using an incorrect Important Notice for about 2 years… and every judgment that they have entered is subject to being stricken.
If you would like a review of your default judgment, you will need to provide us, or another attorney, with a copy of several documents. The Complaint, the Important Notice, the Sheriff return document and a copy of the complete docket statement. We can review for errors and determine whether any mistakes were made. If any were made, then you can petition the court to strike the judgment. If this is successful, this does NOT mean that you win the case. It simply means that the lawsuit is re-opened. You will have an opportunity to defend the case from that point.
